Even though we were a few months into the child sponsorship journey with Compassion (researching the organization, praying about sponsoring a child, and then finally sponsoring two children)there was still a piece of me that had felt distant from the process. Until now.

When someone at the grocery store is rude to you or your friend is a bit short, it’s always good to remember that you have no idea the struggles and challenges that they are facing at that exact moment — so extend grace to them!

Sami Cone’s children wanted to be a part of a sponsored child’s life, but not just any child, a child their age that they could start to relate to on at least some level. They wanted to feel like they were making a difference. They wanted to learn how to put feet to their faith.

One-to-one sponsorship helps children across the globe write off poverty and begin living a lives of hope. And it begins when someone picks up a child packet and makes the commitment to sponsor a child. That’s when our sponsorship notification process gets rolling.

We depend on the church in your sponsored child’s community to carry out our programs. With your help, we provide the church with finances, guidance and accountability in order to make their program a success.

The question of whether child sponsorship is about us or the children we sponsor generates a lot of discussion – and sometimes disagreement. Should we hold on tightly to the things and people we cherish or should we hold on loosely?

First, poverty lies to the poor by telling them over and over that they do not matter, that no one cares for them, and that they are forgotten. Poverty speaks to the heart of a person (especially children) and tells them, “Give Up!” But that’s only one part of the lie of poverty.

It’s said that Ernest Hemingway once wrote a story in just six words.
For sale: baby shoes, never worn.
And called it his best work.
In the spirit of Hemingway’s brevity, and maybe with little help from the Holy Spirit, can you sum up your sponsorship experience in six words?
Here’s what we came up with.
Thought I…

It was Christmas morning, and I lay impatiently in my bed awaiting the sound of my parents stirring downstairs. We’ve never been the kind of family that wakes up and rushes to the living room to tear into the gifts before we have properly washed the “eye boogers” out of our eyes (disgusting I know, but…

In the courtyard, Mariam’s sisters, Assanata and Zourata, are preparing to leave. They both have weekly appointments that they would not miss for anything in the world. They are registered at the Assemblies of God Central Church of Koudougou Child Development Center.

Sponsor tours usually cost from $2,000 to $4,000, plus airfare to the departure city.

Is that the best use of your money? What is the benefit to your child — to children in poverty? Would it be better to use that money to: send a family gift, sponsor another child or donate to the Global…

I know poverty. I have lived with it. So I wasn’t expecting anything out of the ordinary on my way to Shan’s house. I was carrying two bags of groceries as I negotiated my way through the crowded neighborhood. Then I stopped. I literally felt a thud on my heart and tears began to roll.

Be forewarned. What follows is pure rah-rah. It showed up in employee inboxes … from MARKETING. It’s just a small glimpse into the response Compassion Sunday 2008 has received so far.
We’re at over 9,700 children sponsored. Our goal is 22,000. It’s not too late to host your own event.
“Austin Bluffs Evangelical Free Church…

Through the letters shared between the sponsor and the child, hope is not only stirred, but relationships are built, wounds healed and love blossoms. These and so many other things start a chain reaction not only in the child’s life but also in the lives of those around him or her, and impact is felt…

Meet Jeffry. He lives in Nicaragua. He is our one millionth registered child.
A registered child is different than a sponsored child in that the registered child doesn’t have a sponsor . . . yet. Once the registered child gets a sponsor, that child is a sponsored child. Makes sense, right?
The registered children are the…